


you're all that I've been yearning for

by readerstable



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: First Date, First Kiss, First Meeting, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Kinda, Lonely Buck, M/M, Soft Eddie Diaz, eddie and buck are neighbors in buck’s apartment complex, eddie makes his first friend in l.a., ive thrown canon timelines out the window ok on with the story, meet cute, surprise! its buck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:47:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25653847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/readerstable/pseuds/readerstable
Summary: In which Eddie becomes Buck's neighbor when he and Chris first move to L.A. and they meet in the cutest way possible.Or, two lonely strangers find each other and the rest is history...
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 211





	you're all that I've been yearning for

**Author's Note:**

> I got inspired to write this fic from this wholesome story I saw on tumblr: https://catchymemes.com/post/173378270843/the-best-kind-of-neighbour  
> Obviously, I changed it up a bit, but I hope you enjoy it!

Moving out to California was no small feat. Eddie’s family had warned him that the move would be tough, especially while caring for Christopher in the process, but Eddie felt a small amount of pride when he was finally able to look at his completed apartment. Eddie’s plan was to eventually put some money down on a house to call their own, but he wanted to get started at the fire station for a little while before making that large commitment.

Chris spent the majority of the first week with Abuela as Eddie tried to figure out Chris’s school registration and other matters that needed to be settled that required a lot of his “free time” before he started at the station the following week. That, and being the big softie he is, Eddie wanted Christopher’s first night in their new apartment to be special and he didn’t want him to have to sleep with all the unpacked boxes cluttering up the halls.

Abuela had dropped Chris off and said her goodbyes after she settled Chris into their new space. Eddie was nervous to see what Chris thought of their new home, but he was so happy to see how excited Christopher was.

They spent the afternoon watching movies on the new television Eddie had purchased for the new place. It was nearing dinner time and Chris had asked Eddie if they could get ice cream later, which of course, Eddie could not deny.

When Eddie and Chris were about to head out the door, Eddie’s phone rang and he stepped into one of the bedrooms to take the call, telling Chris to wait for him since he would be ready to go in a moment.

Now, Chris, left somewhat alone as his dad took the call in the other room, was quite a curious child. Back in Texas, the land they lived on was so large that they didn’t have nearby neighbors, and Chris was intrigued by the smell of something cooking coming from their neighbor’s apartment. He knew he wasn’t supposed to talk to strangers, but he was so caught up in the smell of something delicious, that he decided grab a plate and head next door to try to get some of that food he smelled cooking.

* * *

Buck had recently arrived home after a tough shift. He loved being a firefighter, but he’s the first to admit that its tough coping with the horrible things they see when all is said and done at the end of the day. Instead of ordering pizza, he had figured that cooking a nice dinner would distract him from thinking too much about the trauma he had witnessed earlier that day.

After cleaning up the mess he made while cooking, he checked on the lasagna baking in the oven and figured it would be done in a few minutes. Buck headed over to his kitchen table and set down a single place setting for himself, which made him feel even more lonely. A few moments later, he pulled out the piping hot lasagna from the oven and sighed at its size. He knew he’d end up freezing most of it since it was impossible for one person to eat the whole pan.

Buck knew he was having a pity party for himself and that he was probably just being dramatic. Realistically, he knew that after dinner he would head to bed and enjoy his day off tomorrow, but that nagging loneliness he felt would not dissipate.

He sat in silence and finished off the nice plate he made for himself. Buck was about to walk over to the fridge to grab a beer when he heard a quiet knock on his door.

Buck walked over to the door, figuring it was Maddie coming to check on him as he had been texting her earlier about the rough day he had, but he was surprised to see no one there. That is, until he heard a little “hello” coming from a short height.

Buck smiled and looked down at this little boy all by himself. The child was leaning on crutches and he was holding a small plate under his arm. Before Buck could question him, the boy jumped right to it, “Hi! I’m Christopher and I live over there,” He started, pointing down the hall to the next door, “Can you please give me some of the food you were making? I could smell it.”

Buck was in a bit of shock. Who was this child and why is he here? Is this some sort of trick to see if he would let a lone child come in his apartment? Buck didn’t have much time to think before he heard footsteps shuffling down the hall towards them.

“Christopher! What on earth are you doing? You know you aren’t supposed to go out by yourself!” The man said, chastising the boy. If Buck wasn’t so confused, he would admire this young man’s handsomeness, but now wasn’t the time.

“I’m sorry, daddy. I wanted to get some food.” The boy, Christopher, responded.

“Christopher, we have food at home and we were about to go get ice cream! You make it look like we’re beggars, which we are not.”

“What’s a beggar, dad?” Chris chimed in, truly too innocent for this situation.

Before his father could scold him again, Buck added, “It’s really okay, man. No harm no foul.”

This caused the boy’s father to look at Buck for the first time. He had been so focused on his son, bending down to look him in the eyes, that looking up at Buck was almost a surprise, as if he forgot that Chris was actually at this man’s door.

Eddie stood up, once again surprised at how the man was taller than him, which was a rarity, and how hot he looked. He had to push some inappropriate thoughts to the back of his head before he cleared his throat, “I’m sorry, I was on the phone and Chris just left without me. We just moved in and I haven’t had the chance to explain why it’s dangerous to do that kind of thing here in L.A.,” He added, aiming the last part of that sentence at the smiling boy below them.

Buck started putting the pieces together. He could see why the man would assume such a stranger would be dangerous, and he didn’t blame him, “You from out of town? I saw the moving trucks outside the other day and I guess that was all your stuff.” Buck said, smiling at the stressful appearance of this man.

Eddie nodded. “Yeah, we’re from Texas. I’m Eddie, by the way.” He said, extending his hand to shake Buck’s, “And you’ve already met Christopher.”

Buck smiled, “Nice to meet you both. I’m Evan.” Buck hadn’t even realized he had introduced himself by his given name, but it just felt right to him.

“I was making lasagna, little man,” He said motioning for them to come in as he turned around and headed into his kitchen.

“We really can’t impose, Evan. Thank you, though.” Eddie said, trying to guide the eager Chris out of the doorway.

“But Dad! He’s offering it now, I didn’t ask him to do that!” Chris pleaded, making Buck chuckle to himself. Buck caught Eddie’s gaze as he laughed, which caused him to let out a small chuckle too as he gave into his child’s pleading.

“Please sit,” Buck said, turning to bring the pan of lasagna to the table. “I already ate, but you are both welcome to as much lasagna as you can eat!”

“What do you say, Chris?” Eddie asked, watching his son try to get some lasagna on his small plate.

“Thank you!” He yelled, causing the two older men to laugh again.

“Any time, buddy,” Buck started, “So, why the big move from Texas?”

He noticed Eddie sigh, and before he could respond, Buck added, “Have you ever been to California before?”  
Eddie seemed to notice how Buck picked up on his hesitancy to answer him and how he changed the subject to save Eddie from answering it in front of his son. He listened on as Chris explained how his dad was a soldier and how they wanted to come to California so they could “be together”, as he put it.

“His mom’s not in the picture,” Eddie said quietly, as he helped Buck clean the plate he had eaten off of. Chris was still at the table eating his helping of food, so they had the tiniest bit of privacy as they stepped away.

“Ah. I didn’t want to intrude by asking.” Buck responded, smiling.

Buck will admit later that he felt a bit smitten with this new neighbor from the moment he laid eyes on him, and that as soon as these two people showed up at his door, his loneliness seemed to disappear.

“Do you want to join us for ice cream? He definitely won’t let me change my mind on that.” Eddie asked, appearing slightly nervous to hear Buck’s response.

Buck was taken aback, too. Before really considering it at all, he immediately agreed.

* * *

The rest of their evening together was rather pleasant. It had been a while since Buck immediately hit it off with someone, but he wasn’t assuming that Eddie could even like him in that way because they had literally met that night. Still though, he was glad his loneliness was at least temporarily cured.

Buck had offered to drive them, since he knew the area better, and they all enjoyed ice cream at a local place. It was on that outing that he learned more about Chris and Eddie, and had learned more about how they moved to California because Eddie’s family was pressuring him to raise Chris in a way he didn’t want to.

By the time they arrived back at the apartment complex and Chris was back in his own room, Eddie had shyly added, “I haven’t shared that much with a complete stranger in a while, but for some reason I trust you already.” He was looking down at his feet.

“Hey, what are friends for?” Buck smiled in response.

This got Eddie’s attention. Had Buck said the wrong thing? Of course he ruined what they had going for them…

“Yeah, I guess you’re my first friend out here, Evan.” Eddie smiled, “I haven’t even started work yet, so it’s nice to have a friend as our neighbor.”

“I’m glad, too. I was having a rough night and you guys brought me a lot of joy tonight.” Buck said nervously.

This seemed to concern Eddie, which prompted Buck to add, “I’m fine, really. So thank you for stopping by,” He said, turning to exit towards his own apartment.

Eddie quickly grabbed Buck’s hand to prevent him from leaving right away. There was definitely some sort of spark there, but neither of them acknowledged it.

“Do you maybe want to join us for dinner sometime soon? You can consider it a thanks for tonight.”

Buck smiled, noticing how Eddie’s hand was still in his. He really didn’t want to let it go.

“That sounds nice, Eddie.” Buck glanced around nervously, “I have Monday night off, could that work?”

Eddie nodded, “That works for me, too. My first day of work is Monday so at least I’ll have that to look forward to.”

Buck smiled, gently pulling his hand out of Eddie’s. It appeared that even Eddie forgot they were still touching until he pulled away.

“I’ll see you then,” Buck said, heading towards the doorway, “And listen, if you ever smell anything cooking at my place, feel free to knock on my door again.”

Eddie laughed, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Buck smiled, finally turning and heading towards his doorway. Eddie waved from his own doorway and Buck laughed as he gently closed his door.

* * *

A few days later, Buck walked into work with a pep in his step. That night with Eddie and Chris had been pretty enjoyable and he felt rejuvenated, ready to start a new work week knowing that he was set to have dinner with his new neighbors that night after his shift.

It was when he heard a familiar voice introducing himself to his coworkers that Buck’s day was changed for the better.

“Eddie Diaz, new recruit,” Buck heard Bobby say to the team. Buck was trying to piece together why Eddie would be here, but he soon realized that this “new job” Eddie was nervous about was in fact a job that Buck would share with him.

Buck lingered behind as Eddie shook hands with Hen and Chim, smiling smugly as he leaned on a nearby doorway. Once he caught Eddie’s gaze, Eddie did a small double take, which made Buck laugh out loud as he walked over to give him a hug.

“You didn’t say you were a fireman!” Eddie said surprisingly as Buck pulled out of the hug, once again causing Buck to laugh.

“Wait you guys know each other?” Bobby pondered, watching them with a smile.

Eddie quickly responded, “Yes, Cap. I know Evan very well.”

Bobby laughed, “The fact that you called him Evan makes me believe you. Everyone here calls him Buck.” He smiled, walking towards his office.

“Buck?” Eddie asked, staring at his neighbor.

“Nickname.” Buck responded quietly, still smiling.

Eddie ushered Buck away from the team after he made the rest of his introductions. Upon finding some sort of storage closet, he guided Buck inside.

“Are you planning on killing me and hiding my body in here?” Buck joked, running his finger over a thick layer of dust forming on one of the old shelves.

Eddie chuckled, but it seemed forced. He was clearly on edge.

“Listen, uh,” Eddie started, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. “I’m only suggesting this because Cap made me sign about a million work forms this morning and it’s fresh in my head…”

Buck looked at him curiously, smirking at his apparent nervousness.

“And basically, if two coworkers decide to start a relationship, it’s a whole ordeal.” Eddie continued, shyly moving his eyes to meet Buck’s. “They basically have to sign a million more work forms, they have to clear it with the chief, and they might be separated to different fire stations or shifts if their superiors make that decision.”

Buck was still confused as to where this conversation was going and why they had to be having it in the storage closet. He nodded, motioning for Eddie to continue.

“Anyway, I had brushed Bobby off because I didn’t really think I was looking for a relationship here…” Eddie once again shifted eye contact. Buck noticed how he was sweating and how he couldn’t quite keep still, pacing back and forth in the small storage room. “Then you walked in and I just had this idea but the longer we talk right now, the more I realize how stupid it is so never mind-“

“You want to tell Bobby that we’ve been dating prior to you working here so there would be no problems in the future, right?” Buck smiled, surprising Eddie.

Eddie huffed, “I guess that’s what I was trying to say, yeah. I mean I didn’t even know you had a nickname until two minutes ago, so we probably won’t work out and I know we only just met but I don’t even know if you like guys and I know I’m a lot to take in and I can’t ask you to join the circus of my life, but I guess it wouldn’t hurt to pretend just in case something comes up-“

Buck was still smiling at his nervous counterpart. Eddie was sweating and his face was slightly red. He kept running his hands through his hair and still couldn’t stand still. Buck was so enthralled with this turn of events that he placed his pointer finger over Eddie’s mouth and motioned for him to be quiet.

The feeling of Buck’s finger on Eddie’s lips was so intimate that Eddie inadvertently let out a small whimper. It took him a moment to realize that Buck was not just shutting him up to be rude, but because he was endeared by Eddie’s rambling. It was Buck’s million-dollar smile that gave that part away…

“Can I kiss you, Eddie Diaz?” Buck whispered, finger still on Eddie’s lips.

“Yes you can, _Buck_.” Eddie responded while Buck moved his hand to gently wrap around the back of Eddie’s neck.

Buck smiled again, “Can you keep calling me Evan? I liked it.”

Eddie blindly nodded again, slowly getting flustered at their closeness.

As Buck got even closer into Eddie’s personal space, Eddie could feel his breath fanning on his face. Their lips were so close that they could feel the hot air they were each emitting and before long, Buck’s lips were gently on Eddie’s.

Eddie hasn’t kissed many people, but he would die before admitting that. There had been the occasional girlfriend throughout high school and of course Shannon, but Buck was the first boy he kissed, which sent a jolt of energy into Eddie. Eddie was in such a clouded haze that he had sort of forgotten to kiss Buck back, but he snapped out of his day dream to move his lips in tandem with his new… boyfriend.

Eddie’s hands rested on Buck’s lower back and when Buck gently pulled away, Eddie couldn’t help but lean his head on Buck’s shoulder, breathing into his neck in some weird semblance of a hug. Buck chuckled, seemingly surprised at this turn of events and rubbed his hands on Eddie’s upper back.

* * *

“Where’d you guys sneak off to?” Bobby asked, seeing the two men walk up the stairs together.

Buck laughed, “We were gone like two minutes, Cap.” Bobby wasn’t all that interested anyway, he was evidently trying to make small talk with the newest recruit.

“We were actually talking, Cap. I haven’t told any of you, but I actually have a boyfriend.” Buck continued.

This revelation grabbed the attention of some other crew members, who made their way over to the small group forming.

“He’s actually our newest recruit, as you called him.” Buck smiled, looking towards an increasingly sweaty Eddie Diaz.

Bobby nodded, “You know, Eddie,” He started with an all-knowing smile, making his way over to them, “When I told you about the H.R. paperwork this morning, I wasn’t telling you to immediately go out and start dating a coworker.” He sounded serious, but everyone could tell his voice was light.

Eddie attempted to stutter out some type of response, which elicited light laughter from his new team. Bobby walked over towards him with a big smile and shook his hand, “Welcome to the team, Eddie Diaz, A.K.A. Buck’s boyfriend.”

The small group around them cheered and laughed quietly, and a moment later, they dispersed.

“Come by my office later and I’ll adjust those forms. Since you two were dating before you started working here, there should be no problems at all.” Bobby smiled, patting Buck on the back as he walked over to join the others who were congregating in the kitchen.

Buck looked over at Eddie, who still looked a bit stunned at what just happened, which caused Buck to smile even wider. Buck grabbed Eddie’s hand and waved it proudly in the air, which caused Eddie to shyly smile at his feet. This was definitely not how Eddie pictured his first day of work going, but he sure was excited for the new life he had created in California.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "I've Been Waiting For You" from Mamma Mia 2
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
